Internal-combustion engine



R. KfloHNsoN.

4INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1r, 191s.

1,347,276. Patented July 20,1920.

l Q f s F N lf @y C) N v I d w Q I N Q ai N l FE r//mv Ta ENa//ve CA s s To all whom it may concern:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROYAL K. JOHNSON, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR T0 THE MINERVA ENGINE COMPANY, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

'Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented lJuly 20,1920.

Application filed April 17, 1918. Serial No. 229,041.

Be it known that I, ROYAL K. JoHNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland in the county of Cuyahoga and State of hio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following 1s a full, clear, and exact description.

Thisv invention relates to internal combustion engines, and particularly to an 1 mproved speed regulator. In a more specific aspect the invention relates also to en oil pressure regulator which has the combmed functions of regulating the oil pressure 1n the lubricating system and also to regulate or automatically reduce the speed o f the engine when the latter becomes excessive:

One of the principal objects of thls 1 nvention is to provide a regulator which will gradually decrease the speed of'the engme without stopping the engine entirely or reducing the speed to an abnormally low point.

Still further objects are to prov1de a simple, efficient, self-contained regulator, particularly one which performs the dual functions of controlling the engine speed and governing the pressure of the oil in the lubricatin system to avoid excess1ve pressure an overheating.

The invention may be briefly summarized as consisting in certain novel details of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts which will be described in the specification and set forth in the appended claims. f

In the drawin Figure 1 is a side view of the intake mani old of an engine, showing the speed controlling throttle valve and my improved regulator with portions of the piping of the lubricating system, and Fig. 2 1s a conventional side view of an engme showing the oil pump .and other portions of the lubricating system.

In carrying out my invention I `use as a medium for actuating the regulator, a fluid in a circulating systemV wherein the pressure varies with the engine speed, and I utilize a valve preferably in the form of a piston which is moved, from normal position by increase of pressure in this circulatin s stem, this valve or piston being operatlve connected to the throttle valve so as to shift ing tothe engine. This valve is so conthe same'to govern the mixture passstructed and arranged that as the pressure rises 1t gradually by-passes more and more of the fluid in the system from the high pressure to the low pressure side or source of supply by uncovering suitably positioned ports or a relatively long spiral port so that as more of the fluid is by-passed the movement of the valve or piston will be gradually reduced, causing a gradual closure of the throttle valve.

In the broad aspects of the invention it 1s lmmaterial what character of fluid is circulated in the system, and what circulating system 1s utihzed, whether a special one provided for use solely with this regulator, or one already-utilized on the engine, but preferably the circulating system is the o1l1ng or lubricating s stem of the engine where1n the pressure o the circulating fluid normally varies with the speed of the engine, for with this embodiment by having the valve or piston shunt or by-pass gradually increasin portions of the oil from the pressure side o the pump back to the crank caseor oil supply, t e pressure will not increase proportionally with the speed and will not become excessive. The last mentioned embodiment of the invention is the one `herein shown, and will now be described.

In the drawing, 10 represents a manifold of the engine E (shown conventionally in Fig. 2), which engine may be of any suitable construction and may be used for any other purposes for which an engine of this type is used, such as for trucks or other vehicles. The manifold is supplied by a conduit 10Si which may be considered a part of the manifold. In this conduit there is provided a throttle valve 11 which is designed to automatically control or regulate the speed of the engine, this valve being preferably separate and distinct from the throtthrottle valve 11, butl as here shown is provided with a stem 16 which passes through an adjustable plug 17 and is connected to an arm 18 on the shaft or pin which supports the throttle valve 1,1. Any other suitable form off connection between the stem and valve, such as rack and pinion .connection may be utilized.

Between the iston 15 and the lu 17 through which t e stem 16 passes an w ich is adjustably fitted into the base of the chamber 12, is a coil spring 18 which yieldingly resists the inward movement of the piston. By adjusting the position of vthe plug 17, the compression and resisting action of the spring may be adjusted so as' to adapt the regulator /for different engine speeds. r

' The head or outer side of the cylinder 14 has connected to it a'iiuid supply pipe 19 which in accordance with the preferred form of my invention previously described is connected at some suitable point to the pressure line or pipe 20 leading from the oil pump P, shown conventionally in Fig. 2. Additionally the base of the chamber 12 has attached to it an oil return pipe 21, which will lead to the sump of the crank case as indicated in Fig. 2, or to the source of oil supply in whatever form it may be.

To avoid confusion and unnecessary illustration I have not shown a complete oiling system as the particular form of system, and the arrangement of the piping, is nnmaterial to this invention, it being important only that the oil be circulated through the system by an engine driven pump.

\ It will be observed that the barrel or cylinder 14 is provided to the left of the normal position of the piston with a series of spirally arranged ports or outlets 22, which will be successively uncovered as the piston is moved inward from normal position, so as to allow more and more of the oil to be by-passedby the pipes 19 and 21, as the speed increases. It will be understood without illustration that instead of having aseries of spirally arranged isolated circular ports 22, rectangular ports or ports of'any other shape may be employed,- and that a single diagonal or spiral slot may be utilized.

The action of this device is as follows:

When the speed is normal or below the predetermined number of revolutions, no oil will be by-passed around the pump or from :the pressure side to the source,due to the lfact that none of the ports (or no part of a single port if the latter is employed) is uncovered by the piston, but as the speed inand if the speed still increases the piston will continue to radually uncover the succeeding ports, alI the oil to be by-passed, thus preventing the pressure building up to an excessive point with its consequent overheating. At the same time that this oil pressure is being gradually reduced or prevented from increasing by the increased by-passing of the oil, the throttle valve is gradually closed, but as more and more of the ports are uncovered the movement of the piston will gradually slow down, the final movement or movements being gradual, and preventing the sudden stop ing or sudden decreasing of the speed o the engine below that desired. When the fiston has reached practically the limit o its inward movement, whichy in practice just uncovers the last port, the throttle valve is nearly but not entirely closed, that is to say, it is closed to the extent required to bring about a reduction of the engine speed to the predetermined desired maximum speed.

In the respects above stated, this inven-l tion has a considerable advanta e over the common ball governor which or inarily has -the disadvantage that it slows down the engine speed too quickly and too much, if not altogether stopping it.

Additionally this structure not only serves both as an oil pressure governor and a speed owing more and more of governor, but the device is very inexpensive and simple in construction, it being a feature of the construction that no packing is required, for the reason that there is no pressure in the chamber 12, and the height of the oil in the chamber never rises to the level of the fstem 16. -In fact, the use of a piston ring or extremely accurate fitting of the piston in the barrel is not essential, for any oil which may seep past the piston will pass directly from the barrel to the lower part of the chamber, and return by pipe 21 to the source of oil supply.

I do not desire to be confined to the exact details shown, or exact combinations specified, but aim in my claims to cover all modiications which do not involve a departure from my invention in whole or in part, as ex ressed in the appended claims.

aving describedmy invention, I claim:

1. In combination with an internal-coinbustion engine having a throttle valve and a circulating system for engine lubricant, high and low pressure by-pass pipes adapted to be connected thereto, and a valve responsive to increase of oil pressure due to increase of engine speed for gradually increasing the by-passin of oil as the engine speed increases, there y preventing excessive -rise of pressure in the lubricating system, said valve being connected to the throttle valve.

2. In combination with an internalv combuston engine having a throttle vai'v @d a -circulatinggsystem for engine lubricant, an oilfpressu're release valve` for prev itinflr v n excessivefrisexof pressure in he oil ircuilating'system, said valve being Aconnected Withthe throttle valve so as. to simultaneously act as tspeed regulator. f

valveand' a f circulating system for :engine lubricant, means for preventing excessive risev of pressureLin-the circulating system including a by-pass valve and by-pass pipes adapted to be connected to the high and low pressure sides of the system, and means connecting/the second-named valve to the irst-named valve.

4. The combination With an internal combustion engine having a throttle valve for regulating the speed thereof and having a circulating system for engine lubricant, and means for regulating the pressure in the oil circulating system comprising by-pass pipes adapted to be connected to highl and low sides of the system, and a valve comprising a piston and a chamber receiving the piston and having itsznlet and exhaust sides connected to said pipes and having outlet ports adapted to be successively uncovered by said piston as the pressure in the-system increaseswith increase of speed, said piston being connected to said throttle valve.

5.The combination with an internal conibustionengine having a vthrottle valve and a circulating system for engine lubricant,

means forA preventing excessive rise of pressurel 1n the circulating system as the enlginespeed increases and for simultaneously decreasing the engine speed, said means comprising a chamber, a cylinder or barrel in said chamber, and provided with a plurality of spirally arranged ports, a piston in the -barrel'or cylinder connected to the throttle valve', and by-pass pipes adapted to be connected to the high and low pressure sides of the system, one of said pipes being connected to the cylinder or barrel and the otherV being connected to the chamber.

6. The combination with an internal combustion engine having a throttle valve and circulating system for engine lubricant, means for preventing excessive rise of pressure in the circulating system as the engine speed increases and for simultaneously de` creasing the engine speed, said means coinprising a chamber, a cylinder or barrel in said chamber, and provided with a plurality of spirally arranged ports, a piston in the barrel or cylinder connected to the throttle valve, and by-pass pipes adapted to be connected to the high and low pressure sides of the system, one of said pipes being connected to the cylinder or barrel and the other being connected to the chamber, and adjustable means for yieldingly resisting the movement of the piston.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aix my signature.

ROYAL K. JoHNsoN. 

